An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when Windows improperly handles hard links. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could overwrite a targeted file leading to an elevated status. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would first have to log on to the system. An attacker could then run a specially crafted application that could exploit the vulnerability and take control of an affected system. The security update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how Windows handles hard links.
This vulnerability carries a CRITICAL severity rating with a CVSS v3.1 score of 10.0, indicating it can be exploited remotely over the network with relatively low complexity without requiring user interaction and does not require pre-existing privileges . The vulnerability impacts confidentiality (data exposure), integrity (unauthorized modifications), and availability (service disruption) for affected systems. Impacting 8 products from microsoft, from microsoft, from microsoft and 5 others, organizations running these solutions should prioritize assessment and patching.
Reported in 2020, this vulnerability emerged during an era marked by increased sophistication in supply chain attacks, cloud infrastructure vulnerabilities, and software-as-a-service (SaaS) security challenges. Security practices during this period emphasized zero-trust architectures, container security, and API protection.
2020-08-17T19:15:14.990
2026-02-23T18:25:10.350
Modified
CVSSv3.1: 10.0 (CRITICAL)
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
3.9
10.0
| Type | Vendor | Product | Version/Range | Vulnerable? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_10 | 1607 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_10 | 1809 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_10 | 1903 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_10 | 1909 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_10 | 2004 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_7 | - | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_8.1 | - | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_rt_8.1 | - | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2008 | - | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2008 | r2 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2012 | - | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2012 | r2 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2016 | - | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2016 | 1903 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2016 | 1909 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2016 | 2004 | Yes |
| Operating System | microsoft | windows_server_2019 | - | Yes |
SecUtils normalizes and enriches National Vulnerability Database (NVD) records by standardizing vendor and product identifiers, aggregating vulnerability metadata from both NVD and MITRE sources, and providing structured context for security teams. For microsoft's affected products, we extract Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) data, Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) classifications, CVSS severity metrics, and reference data to enable rapid vulnerability prioritization and asset correlation. This record contains no exploit code, proof-of-concept instructions, or attack methodologies—only defensive intelligence necessary for patch management, risk assessment, and security operations.